Darkness of the Unown: The Silver Saga
by Cerse Liminara
Summary: The end is nigh. A new world has dawned. Things are not as they once were. Important message within!
1. Episode 0

A/N: Welcome,dear readers, to the first edited episode of Darkness of the Unown Part 4: The Silver Saga. For a while I've been getting the feeling that I'm losing potential readership due to poor early chapters. So, while I'm in a state of writer's block for new chapters, I've decide to edit the early chapters. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon. All I own is the two times I had to edit this.

Episode 0:

Goldenrod Seismic Station-

A door burst open and a young graduate student raced out of it and down the tiled hall. He was just barely able to skid to a stop and turn at the end, and continued his breathless dash to the lounge room. He shoved open the door and stumbled in.

"Director! Mt Silver...monitor...off the charts..."

The director, a man in his late thirties with hair already graying due to his work, rose from his seat at a coffee table. He approached the young man and placed a large hand on his shoulder.

"Kid! Calm down!" he ordered, "Now, what's going on?"

The student caught his breath.

"The Mt. silver monitors just went crazy, sir. Massive tremors are emanating from deep within the mountain. The patterns are pointing towards an eruption within the next hour..."

Silence descended on the room for a moment. Finally, the director spoke again.

"Show me."

Mt. Silver-

Inside the Pokemon Center, a phone added its beeping to the general noise. The secretary on duty picked it up and held it to her ear with a shoulder, so that she could continue working on her computer.

All her activity halted when the voice on the other side began.

"I see. Yes. I understand. Evacuation will commence immediately."

She replaced the phone on its cradle, and pushed a button on the speakerphone. Her voice was amplified and projected all throughout the Center and the surrounding area.

"Attention! The Goldenrod Seismic Center has predicted that there will be an eruption in less than an hour. All visitors and staff must evacuate immediately. I repeat, all visitors and staff must evacuate immediately..."

Most of the visitors left at once, riding out on bikes or Pokemon, but a number of the rowdier ones stayed, not beleiving the report. A series of tremors that removed a good chunk of the mountainside soon sent them packing, though.

With all of the visitors gone, the staff of the Pokemon Center began leaving as well. The secretary who had given the original report stopped and gazed at the entrance to the mountain's interior.

_The logs say nobody's in there, but..._

Another violent tremor shook the earth, and the Pokemon Center began to fall apart. The secretary abandoned her thoughts and fled with the rest.

Silver Cave-

Deep inside the mountain, on a small ledge down in the main shaft below the crater, a single Trainer stood with his eyes closed. Allen Takenouchi had none of his Pokemon with him, having released them outside. They would return in a few hours, presumably at the same time he finished the meditation his kendo sensai had ordered him to do.

At first he ignored the tremors, but then a strong one caused him to lose his balance and fall, staring straight down the shaft. The sight made his eyes grow to the size of Pokeballs. A huge column of glowing magma was boiling up towards him.

_Just my luck for the mountain to erupt while Destaka's gone..._

But it didn't really matter. Allen was confident he could escape the mountain in time. He quickly latched onto the rock wall and began climbing. In a scant minute, he had made it up to the gap in the shaft's wall that led to the exit. The magma was still far below. In a burst of arrogance, he knelt by the edge and watched the magma slowly rise.

Then another violent tremor rocked the mountain. As if in response to Allen's taunting, the magma increased its speed fourfold and rushed upwards at a terrible speed. A few choice words fell from Allen's mouth as he leapt up and began running for the exit.

He reached the top of the steps in the room where numerous waterfalls fell from subterranean rivers. Already, the heat was beginning to make them steam.

Allen's foot fell into a crack formed by the tremors, and he went down, flopping hard down the steps. He landed in a heap at the bottom, and spit up blood. He tried to force himself up, but a terrible pain in his chest foced him down again.

He shakily turned back to where he had come from. A torrent of molten rock cascaded over the slope and crashed into his already broken body with the force of a diesal train.

* * *

Allen opened his eyes. Around him was nothing but blackness. Above, below, and all around. And yet, he could still see. And he seemed to be lying on some sort of invisible floor. He slowly stood up, holding his head. Then it dawned on him. 

_My head doesn't hurt..._

Neither did his chest, or his ankle, or anything.

"I guess...I'm dead."

He wandered through the blank landscape for a while. He had no idea how long it was. There was nothing in the place to tell time by.

Finally, he asked the question, "Why am I here...?"

((TO DECIDE YOUR FATE.))

"What the...?"

He looked around for the source of the metallic voice. Then he looked down. Something, no, a lot of somethings, were rising up from below. As they got closer, he could see what they were.

"Unown..."

They rose up around him in a giant cylinder shape. And they didn't stop moving. Thousands upon millions upon billions moved about around him in a thousand interlocking layers, each one moving in a different direction.

_What! What do they want...?_

His mental question was answered by the same metallic voice as before

((WE WANT YOU))

"What do you mean?"

((WE WANT YOU))

"For what?"

((WE NEED AN AGENT AMONG HUMANKIND))

"Why...why me?"

((YOU HAVE BEEN CHOSEN))

"W-why?"

((YOU ARE MOST LIKELY TO SERVE US WELL))

"Wha...what do you want me to do?"

((WHATEVER YOU ARE INSTRUCTED TO DO))

He pondered for a moment.

"For how long?"

((FOREVER))

He was starting to feel the cold grip of panic.

"But what's in it for me?"

((LIFE))

His mind raced at a fever pitch. He figured he had already died. So why return. The answer came to him as quickly as the question. He closed his eyes.

_Naoko...Though I may be selling my soul to the devil..._

"I'll do it..."

A/N: WHEW! I finally finished the editing. Gosh, that was hard. Halfway through, I lost all I had doen and had to start over. But that doesn't matter now. It's done. It's good...

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed the revamped version of this chapter, and I hope any new readers will stick around. Although the next two chapters have yet to be edited and are still not-very-good, it gets better later. I promise.


	2. Episode 1

A/N: Welcome to the edited version of Episode One of The Silver Saga. Enjoy as much as you can.

Disclaimer: The only Pokemon I own are the pathetic weaklings in my Gameboy.

Darkness of the Unown: The Silver Saga 

Episode 1:

Near Blackthorne City-

Silver stood unnaturally still on a cliff overlooking the small city below. He measured approximtely six feet and two inches tall, with a slight build that made his height very obvious. His pants, boots, sleeveless shirt and half-cloak were all black. His hair and eyes, however, were shining silver, befitting the name that the Unown gave him.

His eyes were locked onto the forest on the opposite side of the city. A huge dust plume rose above it, and numerous trees fell with great crashes every few seconds. Silver already knew the cause. A group of ten Tyranitar was charging towards the town.

_Incapacitate all aggressors and remove them from the area. Simple enough._

Silver glanced one last time at the forest, and jumped off the edge of the cliff. He fell headfirst, his claok streaming behind him in the wind. Despite the vicious air clawing at his face, he did not close his eyes, and simply stared at the ground below. Finally, when he had almost reached the ground, he flipped his legs up behind him, turning himself over in midair and allowing himself to fall the rest of the way feet-first.

He hit the ground with tremendous force, punching a huge crater into the soft earth. Not fazed in the least, he jumped out and ran for the city. As he neared the outskirts, he leapt straight up onto the roof of a house. He continued his dash towards the rampaging Pokemon on the roofs of the city, leaping to another whenever one ran out. In his hands, he began forming two glowing spheres of energy. Below him, terrified citizens fled the city.

When the last roof of the city ran out, he leapt high into the air again, turning over and over in midair. He had timed his run so as to arrive at the field between the city and the forest at the same time as the Tyranitar. As expected, they crashed out into the open right as he jumped. They stopped for a moment upon seeing what appeared to be a human spraling high in the air.

Suddenly Silver stopped turning over and over, and released the energy spheres in his hands. They flew straight towards the Tyranitar, and hit two of them, sending them flying backwards with dents in their armor. The others stared blankly at their fallen comrades for a moment, then retaliated. They planted their forelegs into the earth, and opened their mouths toward Silver. There was a flash, and eight hissing red Hyper Beams burst from their mouths toward their enemy.

Silver smirked and stuck out both hands together in front of himself. The beams all bent and converged in his palms, flowing together into a single crimson orb. He clasped it with both hands, and drew them apart, pulling the energy into the shape of a rod. He twirled it around in his hands to test its balance, and dove down towards the Pokemon below

Silver struck the first Tyranitar on his way down, knocking it out immediately with the force of the downward blow.

Seven Tyranitar left.

Hetwirled the rod again and caught another Pokemon with a flurry of blows, knocking it out as well.

Six still standing.

Silver drove the rod into the ground, pulling it back and then allowing it to swing free, hitting another Tyranitar several times in the face, rendering it unconscious.

Five enemies remaining.

He swung the rod in a wide arc, knocking away the feet oftwo of the Tyranitar. He tossed the rod into the air, leaped up and turned sideways in midair, catching the rod between his legs and bringing it down onto the Tyranitars' midsections, putting them out of action in one blow.

Three to go.

Silver leapt to his feet, put one foot under the rod and flipped it back up into his hands.He swept the rod under one of the last few Tyranitar's feet, and before it fell, brought up the rod under its lower body, flipping it over so that it landed on its head. It fell unconscious.

2 more.

He stared down the last two for a moment before ramming the rod into the first one's chest, allowing the rod and all of the energy within it to melt into the Pokemon. For a split second it stood there, and thena huge cracking noise sounded,and it flew back into the one remaining Tyranitar, knocking out both of them.

All defeated.

Silver brushed off a bit of dust that had settled on his cloak. He extended a hand, and gripped all of the Tyranitar with telekinetic force, lifting them off the ground and transporting them back to their territory in the mountains.

_Mission complete. Time: Fifteen minutes._

With the menace of the Tyranitar gone, the townsfolk were beginning to filter back into the city.

_Time for me to take my leave..._

Again, Silver extended a hand.

"Reality Shatter!"

A portion of air in front of him shattered inwards as if it were glass, creating an opening into a dark void. He stepped through it calmly, and it repaired itself after him.

He stood still in the darkness, until a humming sound signified the arrival of the Unown. They rose up around him in a huge, shifting cylinder.

((DISTURBANCE NULLIFIED))

"Yes," replied Silver simply

There was a moment of silence.

((DISTURBANCE DETECTED. LUGIA HAS LEFT HIS DESIGNATED TERRITORY. PUT HIM BACK))

Silver rolled his eyes. That bird was getting to be a nuisance.

"Understood," he said.

((GOOD. PROCEED))

The Unown fell back into the abyss. Silver shattered open another opening in the darkness, this time leading to the peak of a mountain north of Kanto. He stepped out just in time to see the silvery form of Lugia fly right past him. The airborne Legendary continued on for a short distance, and then wheeled around to face Silver.

_So the Unown sent you, did they? _he spoke telepathically.

_Yes, _Silver replied, _and I have a message for you. Go back to where you belong. _

_You can tell the Unown that I have no interest in their words. I, unlike you, do not bow down to their every wish like a loyal little Arcanine!_

_You will do as you are told! Or I will have to force you. And remember, you owe me yet_

A tense moment of silence ensued, with the two staring at each other's eyes. Finally, Lugia closed his eyes and turned around.

_You speak the truth. I will go, for now. But now I no longer owe you anything. You would do well to remember that._

_I forget nothing._

_Really? But you seem to have forgotten a lot..._

Without another word, Lugia flew away southwest for the Whirl Islands. Silver watched him go in silence.

_Impertinant creature..._

He opened another portal and returned to the Unown's void. As always, they rose up out of the dark around him.

((DISTURBANCE NULLIFIED. NO FURTHER DISTURBANCES CURRENTLY DETECTED. DO AS YOU WILL.))

"Thank you," said Silver with a slight bow. The Unown fell back.

After a moment's pondering, Silver opened a portal and stepped through it into a back alley of Goldenrod. He stepped out into the city and into his free time.

A/N: Whew...that took me a looooooong time to do. But it's done now. w00t! Now I just need to revise Episode 2, and I'll be ready to finally make a new chapter!


	3. Episode 2

A/N: Welcome to the edited version of Episode 2 of The Silver Saga. This one hasn't been edited as much, but it's still different, and hopefully better. Enjoy!

Darkness of the Unown: The Silver Saga 

Episode 2

Silver walked out into the crowed streets of Goldenrod. Free time. Most of the time. That pretty much summed up his deal with the Unown. He got all his power, he got to stay alive, and got to do anything he wanted. The only condition was that whenever the Unown needed him to do something, he did it. His work, in a nutshell, was dealing with "disturbances" which were anything that threatened the overall order of the world, especially those that involved Pokemon. However, he only had to deal with the major things. Rampaging Tyranitar were probably the least cataclysmic things that warranted his attention.

So, pretty much most of his time was free. Like now.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a cell phone. He flipped it open and checked his text messages. No new challenges.

"Humph. It looks like Trainers now are even more pathetic than they used to be. I haven't gotten a challenge in months!"

Silver was also the Johto League Champion; suffering from an Elite Four that never let any challengers get to him. Not that they were capable of beating him anyway. He smirked. Humans were so very pathetic, even when aided by their Pokemon.

Silver suddenly realized that in all his thinking, he had lost track of where he was going, and had managed to wander into a residential area of the city. It seemed he had a few human mannerisms left in him after all. It was probably an idiosyncrasy left over from his transformation, but he could never be sure. A side effect of the transformation had been an almost complete loss of memory. There were still some things he remembered, though...

_Gah! I'm thinking too much again. I really should do something about this...What?_

Out of the corner of his eye, Silver had seen something. A couple of neighborhood thugs, hulking men wielding iron bars, apparently roughing up a young woman. Normally such things would go unnoticed by Silver, but something about her seemed somehow familiar. Something about her bright red hair seemed to trigger something in his memory. Then, he saw her face. Brilliant blue eyes, watered down by tears, soft features glistening with sweat and blood...

Silver suddenly found himself standing behind one of the thugs.

"I suggest you leave her alone," he said simply.

The thug turned around and looked at Silver, his comrade standing behind him holding on to the girl.

"And what if we don't...punk?" replied the thug, moving forwards and attempting to grab Silver by the collar.

A second later, Silver found his hand outstretched, the two thugs floating in the air.

"Or else THIS!"

He moved his hand, and the thugs flew in the same motion. He slammed them into the side of a nearby house, putting a dent in the metal siding. He then sent them flying hundreds of meters in the air,and then slammed them hard into the pavement. They were still.

By this time, the girl had picked herself up and wiped the tears and blood from her face. Silver turned to face her. A look of hope and happiness burst onto her face.

"Allen...!"

She slowly pushed herself off the ground and fell onto Silver, puttting her arms around his neck and her face in his chest.

"Allen...you're still alive...thank you..."

Silver stared in shock at the girl.

"What...Allen...!"

Begin flashback-

_The girl moved closer to the boy, looking over his shoulder at the shining object in his hands._

_"What is it?" she asked._

_"A Ho-oh feather," replied the boy confidently, "From _my_ Ho-oh, as a matter of fact."_

End flashback-

"Ho...oh...?" Silver repeated dazedly.

"What?" asked the girl shakily, looking up at Silver.

He snapped back into reality and shoved the girl off of him and onto the ground.

"Look! I am not this "Allen" you speak of. My name is Silver! SILVER!"

He turned his back on her and walked away. She remained on the ground watching him go, tears in her eyes.

"He...forgot me..."

* * *

Silver sat on a roof of a skyscraper, the wind blowing through his hair. He looked down on the city, all of its lights spread out over the night. He sighed, and once again told himself that he shouldn't care about that girl. She was just another human, who didn't realize what he did for them all. 

But there was something about her...her face, her hair, her body, the way she had looked at him when he shoved he to the ground...stirred something. Something in his memory.

_I must have known her before the transformation...no, that's impossible. I'm not the same person. Nobody from then can recognize me...she just mistook me for someone else._

His spirit renewed, he dived off the edge of the roof. His dark clothing concealed him from any watchful eyes, and he landed softly in a back alley. He came out near a small nightclub, one of many that allowed Pokemon battles within. He shruged and heaed for the entrance. But he was stopped by a grating voice in his head.

((DISTURBANCE DETECTED. LUGIA HAS LEFT HIS DESIGNATED AREA. RETURN HIM))

He sighed.

"Of course."

_What's gotten into that creature this is the second time in one day..._

He RealittyShatteredtrough the Unown's realm andappeared again on top of a ruined tower in the ruins of Alph. He could see Lugia approaching the area. He lifted up into the air and faced the Legendary.

_I hope you realize what a nuisance you're becoming, Lugia._

_Icould say the same for you, Silver_.

_Impertinant, aren't you?Now, go back to the Whirl Islands. You know how the Unown stand on your...wandering._

_I'm sorry, but I have no intention of remaining in a cave for all eternity. I have tasks to complete, you know._

_Then you're just going to have to not complete them._

_As you say..._

At this, Lugia turned away from Silver and seemed to be heading back towards the Whirl Islands. But then, he wheeled around suddenly.

_"AEROBLAST!"_

Four wide beams of yellow energy blasted out of Lugia's mouth,arcing out in four directions around Silver. Then, they collapsed in on him, encompassing him within the beam, which them lanced sharply forward. He raised a psychic shield, but the force of the blast sent him flying into a ruined building, collapsing it. Lugia took this opportunity to fly away in the opposite direction as the islands.

The pile of rubble shattered outwards as Silver exploded out of it, rage in his eyes.

_Well, it looks like I'm just going to have to hunt you down!_

A/N: And that wraps up edited episdoe 2. Hope you enjoyed it. ...And that concludes my editing of The Silver Saga. Now I can make new stuff! Yay!


	4. Episode 3

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, people who reviewed! Yes, PichuStar, this is very anime-like. That is my intent. Glad to see it's working. And the episode idea does sound good....from now on, each chapter will be called an "episode". And as for him being called Silver in the beginning...Ack-that was not good. Let's call that the prologue that doesn't necessarily line up with the rest of the story. So...Chapter 2 would actually be Episode 1, Chapter 3 would be Episode 2, and this would be Episode 3. Hehehehe. I might have to manipulate the previous chapters a bit. No worries, though. On to Episode 3!

Disclaimer: I own Pokemon. Getoverit, mortals! (an army of Dark Lawyers appear) ...OO I take it back! I don't own it! NOOOOOO!!!!!!!!

Skeith: Cerse Liminara is the sole owner of the characters Silver and Naoko Himogira. Everything else belongs to Nintendo, Creatures, Game Freak, etc.

Darkness of the Unown: The Silver Saga 

Episode 3:

Silver raced through the sky, the force of his flight causing the ground to crack under him. He could see Lugia clearly ahead of him. He was moving fast, using his own telekinesis to accelerate himself. But Silver was faster. He gained speed. As he drew closer, large spheres of psychic energy built up in his hands. That's when Lugia changed direction.

The giant bird suddenly whirled around, with a speed that would have reduced him to pulp if it weren't for his psychic powers protecting him. He swept over Silver, launching a Psywave attack directly at Silver. The combined force of the attack and the powerful air currents created by Lugia's wings were enough to disrupt Silver's attack and send him spiraling towards the ground again. Before Silver had time to react, Lugia sent another Aeroblast at him. The blast hit him full-on, forcing him down into the ground.

_"Catch me if you can, Silver."_

He took off towards the Whirl Islands. He would see how well Silver fared in his own turf.

>Goldenrod City, Meanwhile>

Naoko Himogira ran into the Pokemon Center, her clothes still torn from the incident earlier. She had a halfway-dazed expression on her face. She stopped for a moment, as if unsure of why she was there. Then she seemed to regain her senses somewhat. She stumbled over to the PC in the corner. She accessed the database search and typed in one word: Silver. The PC found one match. It read:

"Silver"

Registered Alias for: Allen Takenouchi.

Status: Deceased. Obituary.

Naoko finally slumped to the ground, tears pouring out of her eyes as her body was racked by tremendous sobs of anguish.

>Whirl Islands>

Silver hovered over the largest of the Whirl Islands. Below him, a gaping hole led into the dark labyrinth of caverns beneath all of the islands. He knew without a doubt that was where Lugia was. His mouth formed a sneer.

"Think you can outsmart me, eh?"

He dived into the cave mouth. There was no light within, so Silver simply used his mental prowess to feel the walls, while simultaneously searching for Lugia. He found his quarry in the form of another Aeroblast exploding out of the floor. This one Silver was able to dodge, giving him a chance to send a retaliatory sphere of energy at Lugia. He tried to dodge it, but it clipped his wing and sent him plummeting down the shaft he had been hiding in. Silver dived after him, two more energy spheres charging in his palms.

At the last moment before Silver would have released his blasts, Lugia suddenly turned into a side passage. Silver flew in after him, and found nothing. It was then that it finally dawned on him that this was where Lugia _lived_. He obviously knew his way around a lot better than Silver did. He dropped softly to the ground, two large energy spheres held at the ready. He advanced slowly forward. Still no sign of Lugia. Then he heard a noise at the far end of a tunnel. He whirled. A narrow pit opened in front of him. The sound was emanating from the pit. The very familiar pit....

>Start Flashback>

_The girl looked apprehensively at the hole._

_"Are you sure this is safe?" she asked, looking down into the blackness below._

_"Of course," said the boy, "I come her all the time. It's not even 2 yards down. It just looks deep because it's so dark."_

_He jumped into the hole. The girl gasped and ran to the edge. The boy's face, barely visible in the gloom, looked up at her._

_"See?" he asked, "Come on!"_

_The girl stood silent for a moment, and then ran at the edge of the pit. She intended to jump straight out so that she could land on her feet, but when she reached the edge of the hole, the rock gave way and she tumbled awkwardly into the hole. She didn't even have time to open her mouth to scream before she found herself held by the arms of the boy. _

_"Thank you...."_

>End Flashback>

Silver closed his eyes and shook his head. _Not again! NOT AGAIN!!! _

But he couldn't stop himself. The energy spheres dissolved in his hands. He jumped into the hole, hitting solid ground before he had even seemed to fall at all. He was in a narrow passage. He walked through it and came out into a large, open chamber. A pool of water was at the center. _The water table-the lowest place in the cave._

He walked around the pool to the other side, as if guided by some omnipresent force. And there, scratched into the rock, were the large, deep letters forming the words:

**Allen/Naoko 2017**

>Begin Flashback>

_The girl looked on as the boy carved the letters into the rock with a chisel._

_"Are you allowed to do that?" she asked, "Isn't this supposed to be some sort of government-protected area?"_

_"Yes," he replied, "But nobody can get down here without knowing where they're going."_

_The girl laughed._

_"Then how did YOU get down here, Allen? Hm?"_

_"Let's just say I had some help, Naoko...."_

>End Flashback>

Silver was stunned. _How is this happening? HOW?_

"WHAT IS HAPPENING TO ME?!!"

A/N: Wow, this turned out better than I expected. Short, yes, but I had to include that little cliffhanger...and I wanted to get something out for the fans...I realize I'm not very good with updating...

Next Episode: Naoko discovers a clue, but will it lead to Allen or Silver? Silver confronts the Unown about the flashbacks, and receives a shocking response. And whose side is Lugia on, anyway?


	5. Episode 4

A/N: Welcome, dear readers, to this fourth episode of Darkness of the Unown: The Silver Saga. I've been swirling ideas for this fic in my head quite a bit, and I figure it'll eventually come out to around 20 episodes altogether. And, right here and now, I'm giving to you my plan for Darkness of the Unown. Right now I'm only writing on TSS. Once I'm done, I will begin The Crystal Chronicle. I was originally planning on overlapping the two, but I figure it would be better to simply have all of the stuff that would have appeared in both just be in TCC. Once I'm done with TCC, and maybe even before, I'll start on The Gold Guidance. BUT, while I'm doing all of this, I'll also begin The Blue Beginning. Once that's done, I'll make The Red Revolution and The Yellow Years. These will parallel each other, and possibly culminate in an overlapping part. The gap between that ending and the beginning of The Silver Saga will be filled with The Guardian. I have no idea when I'll do that. Once I'm done with all that, I'll look to the final three, The Ruby Revival, the Sapphire Story and The Emerald Evolution. I haven't decided what order TSS and TRR are going to be in, but The Emerald Evolution will come only after they're both done. I don't know if I'll make a connecting fic between TGG and TRR. All the while, I'll be doing my lengthy Pokemon Coliseum novelization. Once that and The Emerald Evolution are finished, I'll unveil my ultimate climax fic.

OO Wow, that's a lot. This is probably going to take all of next year, AT LEAST, to finish. However, with a nice long winter break from school coming, I'm sure to get a good chunk of The Silver Saga, and the beginning of The Blue Beginning before the new year.

Jeez, talk about a long A/N....

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon. If I did, this would be an anime instead of a fic on As it is, the best that'll ever happen is a doushinji manga. "Vertigo" belongs to U2.

Darkness of the Unown: The Silver Saga 

Episode 4

Silver fell to his knees, clutching his head. His mind swirled.

_These memories aren't mine...are they?_

((THEY ARE, SILVER.))

Silver looked up and saw the void of the Unown's realm. Solid walls of Unown stood on all sides, forming a cube around him. He slowly stood up.

"How can these be my memories...that girl, she knew me, but no one can know me..."

((THEY ARE YOUR MEMORIES. THAT GIRL WAS YOUR LOVE BEFORE YOU CAME TO US.))

"My...love?"

((YES, SILVER. YOU AND HER WERE DEEPLY IN LOVE BEFORE. THAT IS HOW SHE RECOGNIZED YOU DESPITE THE CHANGE.))

"But that's...impossible..."

((NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE, SILVER. WE BELEIVED YOU KNEW THAT BY NOW.))

"But...how..."

((ONLY YOU CAN ANSWER YOURSELF THAT QUESTION.))

"How?"

((THROUGH YOUR MEMORIES. YOU MUST REMEMBER, SILVER.))

"How do I remember?"

((MASTER YOURSELF! MASTER THIS BODY WE HAVE GIVEN YOU! UNLEASH YOUR TRUE ABILITIES!))

The Unown surrounding Silver began to move, sliding past and around each other. For a while, the cube remained, but the Unown changed their movement, forming an ever-moving sphere around Silver.

_Lights go down, it's dark,_

_The jungle is your head_

_Can't rule your heart_

_A feeling so much stronger than_

Then they began to glow, their eyes emitting a bright golden light. They moved upwards, and Silver went with them.

A thought 

_Your eyes are wide_

_And though your soul_

_It can't be bought_

_Your mind can wander_

His body didn't respond to his mind, and he simply rose limply. His mind was fuzzy; he didn't know what they were doing. But he would.

Hello, hello 

_I'm at a place called Vertigo_

_It's everything I wish I didn't know_

_Except you give me something I can feel_

Beams of golden light lanced out of the Unowns' eyes, piercing Silver's body and holding him in a nexus of energy. Silver tried to yell out in pain, but nothing came.

The night is full of holes 

_As bullets rip the sky_

_Of ink with gold_

Silver looked at his hand. It seemed to fade, and within he could see hundreds of small somethings swirling about.

They twinkle as the 

_Boys play rock and roll_

_They know that they can't dance_

_At least they know..._

Silver could feel his entire body fade, and he could see the small things swirling about in all of his body.

I can't stand the beats 

_I'm asking for the cheque_

_The girl with crimson nails_

_Has Jesus 'round her neck_

((MASTER YOURSELF!!))

Swinging to the music 

_Swinging to the music_

Silver finally found himself able to cry out, as his entire body vanished, and was replace by the swirling things. They floated out of the shape they had been in, and swirled around the place where the beams intersected. Silver went with them.

Hello, hello 

_I'm at a place called Vertigo_

_It's everything I wish I didn't know_

_But you give me something I can feel_

The things reformed themselves into various parts of Silver's body. An arm. A leg. An eye.

Check mated 

Silver's body reformed entirely. The beams still held him. Indistinct flashes of memories flashed in his mind.

All of this can be yours 

_All of this can be yours_

The beams vanished, and the Unown dispersed.

All of this can be yours 

_Just give me what I want and no-one gets hurt._

His body slowly descended. His mind was blank.

Hello, hello 

_We're at a place called Vertigo_

_Lights go down and all I know_

_Is that you give me something_

He reached a solid plane and found himself on his knees.

I can feel you teaching me how 

_You are teaching me how, how to kneel..._

((YOU HAVE MASTERED YOURSELF. YOU CAN NOW GO FIND YOUR MEMORIES, AND UNLEASH YOUR TRUE POWER.))

* * *

Naoko sat on the bench in the Pokemon Center, staring down at her shoes. She felt foolish. She shouldn't have felt so shocked upon seeing the declaration of Allen's death. She had known of it. She had been at the funeral. But that boy who saved her...he was so much like Allen.

_But he's not...Allen's dead._

She wiped away the remaining tears with the back of her hand. There was no sense in remaining at the Pokemon Center. She stood up, and left. She walked slowly through the streets of Goldenrod, eventually reaching a three-story apartment building. Once inside, she made her way to her apartment, on the second floor. She unlocked the door and entered. It was a simple place, containing only three rooms. There was the "living room" where the door led, which contained a couch, a table, a small kitchenette, and a television. A door led into a small bathroom, with another door in the same wall led to her small bedroom. That was where she headed, falling down on the bed.

For a while, she just laid on the bed, looking up at the ceiling. Then she turned her head, and saw it, lying on a shelf. A shining golden feather. It was covered with dust, but its luster shone through. She stared at it for a moment.

_Maybe...that's it._

* * *

Lugia stood in the small pool of water in the cavern. He had watched from above as Silver was taken into the Unown's world. Something strange was happening. Right before, Silver had fallen to his knees.

_Something definitely strange is happening..._

The air shattered. Lugia snapped his head towards the new portal. Silver stepped out. There was a faraway look in his eyes. He didn't seem to notice Lugia, and made for the exit of the room.

_Well, well, Silver. Now what have the Unown sent you to do?_

_...I must find my memories...and unleash my true abilities. Do not get in the way._

Silver exited the room, and began to fly up a shaft outside of it. Lugia spread his wings and followed.

_Silver! The Unown only wish to use you!_

Silver stopped and turned. Lugia had flown to be level with him.

_Do not interfere. _

In less than a second, faster than he ever had before, Silver flung an energy sphere at Lugia. It struck a psychic shield and dissipated. Silver's face remained impassive. Lugia drew back his head, and responded to the attack with an Aeroblast. The yellow beam arced out at Silver.

Silver's body disappeared, and was replaced by the swirling particles. They exploded out of their arrangement, and the attack passed through harmlessly, striking the stone behind the place Silver had been.

_So the Unown taught you some new tricks, did they?_

_...I have mastered myself._

All at once, Silver's body coalesced behind Lugia, and threw two energy spheres into the Pokemon's back. With a shrieking cry, he fell to the bottom of the shaft, the feathers on his back burned. He was still.

Silver looked at the still form of Lugia for a moment, and flew on out of the Whirl Islands. He headed towards Ecruteak City in the north.

_I must find my memories, and unleash my true power._

From within the other world, five voices, and at the same time one voice, spoke.

((IT HAS BEGUN.))

((AS BLUE, RED, AND YELLOW END; SILVER, CRYSTAL, AND GOLD BEGIN.))

((THE FIRST PHASE OF THE SECOND BEGINNING COMMENCES.))

((AND THE MECHANISMS OF THE SECOND PHASE ARE SET.))

((HERE, THE TRUE SAGA OF SILVER BEGINS.))

* * *

A/N: Wow. This episode turned out better than I thought. What's with the thing at the end? Well, you'll find out eventually. (devilish grin) The song I included (yes, that was a song) was "Vertigo" by U2. Thanks to them for writing it.

Next episode preview: Silver's taken out Lugia for the time being, and it looks like Ho-oh's next on the list. Naoko follows the trail of the golden feather, and ends up in the middle of a battle! As Silver strives to restore his memories, he encounters a breakthrough with Naoko. But is it good or bad for her?


	6. Episode 5

A/N: I feel ashamed. It's been so long since I last updated. Bad me! (hits self) But at least I edited the early chapters.

But enough of that tangent. Here, now, is the fifth episode of The Silver Saga. I've been planning ahead for the story, and I'm thinking it'll take about 20 or so episodes. Now that's going to take a while...

Disclaimer: I own Silver, Naoko, the personalities of Lugia and Ho-oh, and the story. Everything else is not mine. But it will be...

Darkness of the Unown: The Silver Saga

Episode 5

Silver coasted in the air above Johto, his thoughts muddled and vague. The only things present in his mind were the words the Unown had said.

"Master yourself!"

"Find your memories!"

He didn't even know where he has flying to. But he reached the place all the same.

He touched down in Ecruteak City. His descent from the sky didn't cause any alarm-the city was known for people having strange powers. He walked slowly, as if in a trance, towards the north end of the city, where the Burned and Tin Towers stood. He flicked his gaze towards the burned-out shell to his left, but didn't pay it any further attention. Rather, he headed down the path leading to the Tin Tower.

The narrow dirt pathway twisted lazily through the woods that bordered the city. Several small shrines stood slightly away from it, some holding offerings left by visitors.

_This is...a...peaceful place..._

At the end of the path, a small building stood blocking the entrance to the Tower. Silver gripped the handle slot and pulled. It was locked. He gripped it again, and jerked it away from the wall, tossing it over his shoulder into the woods. He calmly strode into the building.

Twelve pairs of eyes glared at him as he entered. They belonged to the group of monks who guarded the tower. They had been sitting in a circle around the center of the single room, but now they stood facing Silver. One of them came forward.

"This place is off-limits right now!" he yelled as best as one could with the scratchy voice of an old man, "So leave."

Silver sighed and glared at the man.

"I'm afraid I need to go up there. So I have to ask you to get out of the way, old man."

The monk chuckled.

"Don't let this simple robe and wrinkled face fool you."

He took up a defensive stance. The other monks followed suit.

"You'll have a hard time getting through us, I assure you."

Begin Flashback-

A robed old man stood before a similarly clad young boy. The boy looked at the old man with a patronizing gaze.

"_You're _the sensei? An old man? This is cheap!"

The old man chuckled.

"That's what you think. I think you'll have a hard time getting through my teaching!"

End Flashback-

"...So that's it."

He threw his head back and screamed into the air.

"THAT'S IT!"

He lowered his head and began talking softly to himself, his speech interspersed with almost deranged laughter.

"So that's it...that's what they meant...I understand now...It's all clear..."

"This guy's crazy!" said one of the monks, looking somewhat frightened.

Silver fixated him with a dark glare.

"Exactly."

* * *

Naoko pulled her coat closer to herself. It had gotten windy a while ago, and it served to make the day even colder than it already was. But she pressed on regardless, slowly making her way through the city to the Tin Tower.

There was a flash, and the sound of an explosion filled the city. Naoko stopped where she was. Most everyone else did the same.

_It came from near the Tower..._

A large plume of smoke rose from the woods near the Tower, accompanied by the smell of burning wood. Naoko stared at for a while.

Did...he do this? Is he here? 

She shook herself out of the shock she had received from the initial explosion and headed for the burning forest. In the distance, she could see the city's fire department was already mobilized to combat the blaze. As she drew closer, she could hear the sound of the hoses dousing the flames. By the time she reached the area, the fire had been fully put out.

She stopped short. The entire area was covered in debris. A massive swath of forest had been swept away, leaving only bare dirt where it had been. Everything that had been there was somewhere else. Some of it had even hit several buildings nearby, smashing windows, and, to her shock, embedded within stone.

_It must have been him. Only he could have done this..._

* * *

Silver left behind the wreckage of the building and continued on to the Tin Tower as if nothing had happened. He reveled in the new clarity he had found.

"It all makes sense now...by encountering and fighting those I knew in my past, I can increase my power now...that's why they always had me fight Lugia-to start the process. I can already feel myself becoming a little more powerful from that old man. Who knows how much I'll get from Ho-oh!"

He reached the door to the Tin Tower. A strong construction of old, hard wood, it was firmly locked. So he put a hand against it and shattered it into a thousand pieces. As he entered, he let out a long, chilling, insane laugh that rang out through the city.

Naoko heard the laugh and instantly fixed her eyes on the entrance to the Tower. She saw a small cloud of dust rise. She looked around. Nobody else seemed to notice. She dashed towards the tower.

"Hey! You! Stop! That place is off-limits!"

She ignored the calls and kept on towards the tower. She had to find him. Before something happened.

* * *

Inside the tower, Silver looked around. The Tower had been made to deter intruders, and was designed like a labyrinth, filled with traps and pitfalls and the like to keep intruders from reaching the top.

Silver pondered for a moment. He could just go through the tower normally. It wouldn't be hard to avoid the traps. But, that would be a waste of time. He'd take the fast route instead.

He crouched down low, and leapt straight upward. He crashed through the ceiling and continued upwards.

* * *

Naoko dashed through the ruined doorway into the tower.

"Allen? Allen!...Allen?"

The tower was deserted.

"But...he has to be here..."

Then she looked up and saw the large hole in the ceiling.

"He is here..."

At that moment, two police officers dashed into the tower behind her.

"Hey, you can't...what!"

The officer who had spoken stopped short upon seeing the hole in the ceiling. The other stopped as well, staring up at it.

"Oh, hell..." said the second officer, "you think this was done by whoever blew up the guardhouse outside?"

"I'd bet my life on it," said the first. He turned to Naoko.

"There's a very dangerous criminal in here. Get out now. You, call for backup."

The other officer nodded and took out his radio. This first drew his sidearm. He glared at the unmoved Naoko.

"Didn't you here me! It's dangerous here! Get out!"

"No! I know the person who did this. I can reason with him...And anyway, you probably don't know the way up the tower. I do."

The officer continued to glare at her. She glared back.

"...All right. Once backup gets here, you lead us up the tower. Then leave."

* * *

Silver crashed up through the floor of the highest level of the tower. He glided away from it and landed softly on the wood flooring. Before him stood his quarry.

"It looks like I've cornered you...Ho-oh..."

A/N: Dun Dun duuuuun! Silver's gone crazy, and it looks like he's about ready to fight Ho-oh! Uh-oh...that can't be good. Well, anyway, I'm glad to finally get out a new chapter, and I'm sorry to all of my loyal fans (not that there are many of you) who've been waiting forever for this. Hope you enjoyed it. Expect a new chapter...somewhat soon.


	7. Episode 6

A/N: And here it is...a brand-new chapter, straight from Cerse's head! Please note that at the time this was written, I had watched Akira and Metropolis less than 12 hours ago. So my head is full of images of city destruction. Hahahahahaha.

Disclaimer: As of yet, Pokemon has not been added to the list of Cerse's assets.

Darkness of the Unown Part 4: The Silver Saga

Episode 6

Ho-oh bowed his head and closed his eyes.

"So it would seem. But I still wonder-why is it that you have come back here with the obvious intent of destroying me, only a short time after attacking Lugia?"

Silver shrugged.

"For the same reason I attacked Lugia-to...improve myself."

He caught Ho-oh's eye as it darted towards the thin walls of the tower. He smirked.

"What's this? Looking for a way out? I don't think you fully understand how powerful I've become..."

He jerked his palms down toward the floor, and a wave of blue energy cascaded from his hands onto the floor. It spread out all over the walls and ceiling and floor, and continued down through the hole in the floor, as well as the stairs. After a few moments, the flow stopped, and Silver stood straight again. He chuckled at Ho-oh.

"I've just reinforced every last splinter of wood in this tower with a kinetic barrier. Nothing you can do will be able to break it."

* * *

Below, Naoko was slowly maneuvering across a section of tiles, many of which were made to drop any who walked on them to the floor below. Behind her, carefully following her path precisely, were no less than ten of Ecruteak's finest, sidearms drawn as a precaution against any danger that may come. Finally, the group reached the end of the tiles and stood before the stairway to the next level of the tower. One of the officers climbed a few steps and looked into the floor above. He signaled down for the rest to continue on, but then let out a sort of strangled sound of distress and nearly fell off the stairs with shock. 

"What the hell's wrong with-" started one of the others, but stopped as soon as a wave of blue energy gushed from the floor above. But it passed by harmlessly and continued on.

"It's definitely him..." Naoko muttered to herself.

* * *

Silver watched as Ho-oh looked around for a means of escaped, and laughed crazedly. 

"There's no point. The only way to get out is to destroy me, which you simply can't do. But if you want to try, I won't stop you."

Despite the urgency of the situation, the jibe hit Ho-oh hard. He was a somewhat prideful Pokemon, and he was now feeling a hot enmity towards Silver.

He had fallen into Silver's trap perfectly.

He reared his head back and released a tremendous Sacred Fire attack, engulfing Silver in a huge vortex of white-hot flame. It collapsed in on him, and continued to collapse until it was only a tiny spark, which quickly disappeared.

There was no trace of Silver. Just a collection of smoky particles floating in the air. Ho-oh looked upon the scene breathlessly. So he wasn't so tough after all. But...something was wrong. The particles in the air weren't smoke. They remained floating lazily even after the smoke had dissipated. Then the began whirling around, and then coalesced and flashed. Once again, Silver stood before the Legendary; his eyes alight with crazed delight. He surged forward into the air, and slammed into Ho-oh's chest, propelling him backwards into the wall of the Tower. Then he gripped the bird's neck feathers and spun around, tossing him hard into the floor. He landed lightly on the floor and advanced towards the prostate form of Ho-oh.

He held his hands down at his sides, and a pair of energy spheres ignited into existence and began to grow. The great bird tried to get up, but Silver placed his foot on a wing, and none of Ho-oh's weakened struggling could dislodge it.

All the while, the spheres in Silver's hands had been growing, and were now set at nearly a foot in diameter each. He looked down at Ho-oh and smirked at how pathetic the once-proud and mighty Legendary was.

"Well, goodbye then, Ho-oh. Die peacefully knowing that you helped me reach my potential."

He raised his hands above his head and prepared to sling the spheres into Ho-oh's head.

"Allen! Stop it!"

Silver turned slowly. The energy spheres dissolved, but he kept his foot firmly on Ho-oh's wing. He glanced towards Ho-oh's head, which jerked up and slammed into the ground. Its body went limp.

With Ho-oh totally unconscious, Silver took his foot off of its wing and took a step towards Naoko, who stood at the top of the steps. He glared at her angrily for a moment, and then his face changed to an expression of impassive realization.

"Of course, of course. How could I forget possibly the most important person from my old life..."

Naoko's heart leapt.

"You remember?"

"Of course I do. Which is why you now have to die."

She gasped and took a step back, shocked at his statement. He began slowly walking towards her, a murderous glint in his eyes.

"No, Allen! Stop!"

He didn't hear her, and continued.

"NOW!"

Two of the policemen jumped out from their hiding places under the stairs, to stand half-out of the stairwell. Their sidearms were already out, and they both fired.

The first two bullets hit Silver in his left leg and shoulder. More came, as the first two officers continued firing, and the rest of them came out of the stairs to add their fire. He stumbled backwards under the onslaught, as the bullets opened bloody holes all over his body. Finally, the leader of the police group held up a hand, and the firing stopped. Silver fell forward to the floor, to lie in a slowly growing pool of blood, which was just one of the numerous bloodstains all around.

One of the officers slowly approached, holding his gun at the ready. He knelt down, and reached out a hand to feel for a pulse. Right before his hand touched Silver's neck, his body shattered, nearly bowling over the officer. The small fragments that Silver's body had become drifted towards the ceiling in a disperse group, and stopped.

After a tense moment, where the fragments seemed almost to be thinking to themselves, they plunged downwards at blistering speed, directly towards the officer who had tried to take Silver's pulse. They struck him one after the other, punching straight through his abdomen. When the last one passed through, he gave out a choking cough and slumped to the side. Silver reformed his body, and glanced at each of the policemen in turn.

"Heh...pathetic."

Before any of them could recover their wits enough to fire, he had rushed forward and struck the first two with blows powerful enough to send them flying back into the walls, passing through the kinetic barrier and continuing on through the thin walls to the empty air beyond. Within two seconds, three more had suffered the same fate, leaving only four officers to slowly back up, shielding Naoko behind them as they moved towards the stairs. Three of them raised their guns and fired, while the other fumbled for his radio. Silver simply smirked and put out a hand. The bullets slowed and froze in midair.

"You know, these really do feel rather good. You ought to try them."

The bullets turned around and flew back as if fired again, striking the three shooters precisely in the forehead. They fell forward to the floor.

By now, the last one had gotten to his radio, and was about to press the talk button, when Silver stood in front of him and gripped his throat. He lifted him up off the ground effortlessly.

"You're in my way." he said calmly, and tossed the man away to smash through the wall and plunge down to the city below.

"And now for you, Naoko."

"Allen! Stop this! Stop this killing! You've done enough!"

"No, Naoko, It isn't enough. It will never be enough until _they_ say it is enough. Until then, all I can do is continue. And now, you stand in my path. So in order to continue, you now must die here and now."

Naoko could do nothing but stumble back into the wall as Silver raised his hands above his head. A roiling orb of blue energy formed between them.

"Goodbye, Naoko. With any luck I'll see you again..."

And he brought his hands down, releasing the orb and sending it rushing towards the defenseless Naoko.

But it stopped.

It hung in midair mere centimeters from Naoko's terrified face. Then it rushed backwards, striking Silver in the chest and propelling him up into the air, to crash down onto the floor a few yards back. The kinetic barrier shattered and dissolved.

He shakily started to get to his feet.

"Why!" he demanded of the air, "Why did you stop me--? Aaaaaaaagh!"

He clutched his head as if in great pain, and slumped back to the floor. With a great effort, he jerked out his arm, and a dark opening shattered into existence in the air. He stumbled to his feet and tumbled through it. It closed itself behind him, leaving Naoko alone in the blood-splattered room.

A/N: Yes, that was short, but when has a chapter of this story been anything else? I'll try to have the next one up quicker. And I still haven't come up with the whole plot for this...but I do have the overall plot for DotU. But I'm not telling you! Unless, of course, you were nice enough to visit Pokemon Black, a link to which can be found on my profile page and my website, The Unown Realm.


	8. Episode 7

A/N: And here's more, a lot quicker than I expected. Hopefully, this sort of thing will happen more often.

Disclaimer: (sigh) See the other chapters. I'm too lazy right now.

Darkness of the Unown Part 4: The Silver Saga 

Episode 7

Silver fell through the portal onto the invisible surface of the Unown's Realm. He slumped over on his side, his eyes cemented shut. He gritted his teeth hard together as more and more explosive pain invaded his mind.

He lay there for what seemed like hours to him, but what was more likely a few minutes. The pain gradually faded away, and he staggered to his feet.

"Why..." he said weakly at first, but then picked up his voice to yell out into the blackness, "Why did you stop me!"

In response, The Unown came as they always did, rising in a column around Silver, shifting and moving about too fast to be seen. Their voice rang out.

((YOU WENT TOO FAR. YOU HAD TO BE STOPPED.))

"But why! I have to kill them to get stronger!"

((WRONG.))

He started.

_Impossible...it can't be..._

((IT CAN, AND IT IS. YOU SHOULD KNOW THIS. YOU HAVE GAINED NOTHING FROM YOUR BATTLES.))

"But why did you wait!"

((YOU HAD NOT TERMINATED ANYONE OR ANYTHING OF IMPORTANCE. YOU WERE NOT IN ERROR UNTIL YOU ATTEMPTED TO.))

"What do you mean! She isn't important!"

((SHE IS TO YOU.))

That finally got to him. He had stood up to yell, but now he slowly sank down onto his knees. He dropped forward onto his hands. A muffled sob passed his lips.

"Naoko...I..."

And as the Unown dispersed around him, for the first time since his rebirth, Silver wept.

* * *

A scant few hours after the encounter at Tin Tower, Naoko found herself again lying soundlessly atop her bed, exactly as she had before she made the trip to Ecruteak.

In the confusion about the two officers tossed from the top of the building, Naoko had managed to get away from the Tower without much trouble and get onto a train back to Goldenrod.

"So now...I'm right back where I started..." she mouthed silently to herself, "So...what do I do now?"

* * *

By the time darkness had fallen, most of the police presence at the Tin Tower has drifted off, as it came to light that there was no evidence to be found of the mysterious attacker. So now Ho-oh was perched on the roof of the tower, leaning forward to watch the actions of the human in front of him.

The human, a slim young man wearing a long black coat over stone grey pants and shirt, was knelt down on one knee with his back turned to the Legendary. Beside him, a long wooden rod lay on the roof.

He reached into a pocket of his pants, and pulled out a thin card of some kind, its faces covered in complex systems of runes, geometric designs and images. He placed it down against the roof, holding it in place with one finger. The images on the side facing up rippled like water, and gradually they began to shift and move about. Some even vanished and were replaced by new ones. The human watched it all carefully until it stopped. He replaced it back in his pocket, picked up the rod, and stood to face Ho-oh.

"So?" asked the bird.

"Well..." said the human, running a hand through his thick silver hair, kept in place by a rough grey headband, "It's even more powerful than you thought. I'm really surprised it didn't spontaneously shift as soon as it was put up..."

"I did tell you he had exceptional control."

"That's an understatement...well, it looks as though we're going to have to keep careful watch over this one."

He fixated the Legendary with a quizzical stare.

"And you're sure neither Mew, Celebi, or Jirachi know _anything_ about what the Unown intend to do with him?'

Ho-oh shook his head sadly.

"Nothing. None of the others have heard anything either. We're all in the dark on this one."

"Alright then..." he said with a sigh, "I'm going to start by trying to find him. If I can at least speak with him, I might be able to get some information, at least."

The Legendary nodded. The human turned away from the bird, but was stopped again by the Pokemon's voice.

"Actually...there is one potential lead we have."

The human turned to glare at Ho-oh.

"Which is...?"

"Before, when he was here, a girl came."

"A girl?"

"Yes...he called her 'Naoko'. He attempted to kill her, and it was only then that the Unown intervened and took him back.

"So you think she may be significant?"

The bird nodded.

"Let me see your Illusion card. I'll give you an image."

The human dug into his pocket again, and drew out another card, this one subtly different from the last. He tossed it in the air before Ho-oh. The Pokemon took hold of it mentally, and it froze in midair. It glowed, and before it appeared a semitransparent image of Naoko as she had been when she was at the tower.

The human took a moment to memorize the look of her face, and retrieved the card from the air. The image promptly vanished.

He dropped the card back into his pocket, and drew out a third. He shouldered his rod and gave a farewell wave to Ho-oh before taking a running leap off the edge of the Tower. The Legendary watched him float slowly down to the ground, and then run off into the woods nearby, away from the city. Shaking his head sadly, he retreated back into the Tower.

* * *

Silver slowly rose from the surface of the Unown Realm into a standing position. Even as he did, the Unown themselves returned, coming up about him in their same endless tube.

((SILVER. YOU HAVE A NEW ASSIGNMENT.))

_Kono basho wo dete aruku_

There was no reaction from Silver.

_Michi no koto wo kangaeru_

((THIS ASSIGNMENT CONCERNS NAOKO HIMOGIRA.))

_Sora wa mada hyai yuugata_

His head jerked up to look at the Unown.

_Kumo ni iro wo nokoshite_

"What!"

_Hajime mo owari mo iranakatta_

((THERE IS AN INDUVIDUAL AMONG THE HUMANS WHO INTEND TO HARM HER.))

_Kimi no me ga tsukuyaita_

Silver's eyes widened.

_Donna kiouku wo sagashitara_

"What do you mean? Who!"

_Mune no fukami e todoku no darou_

((IT IS NOT NECESSARY FOR YOU TO KNOW. SIMPLY PREVENT HIM FROM ACHEIVING HIA AIM.))

_Nagasugita kimi no iu_

Silver was silent for a moment.

_Hibi wa hitoyo no yume no you de_

((WILL YOU TAKE ON THIS ASSIGNMENT?))

_Owaru koto ga shinjirarenai_

"Yes! Yes, of course...but I..."

_Mezameno toki wa mada tooi_

((Good.))

The Unown dispersed again and vanished.

_Sen no yoru wo kesenaide_

"...I can't...speak to her..."

_Mada koko wo tatenai_

A/N: And...cut! That's it for this chapter, short, as always...(sigh) Well anyway. That song at the end was "A Thousand and One Nights" by See-Saw, and yes, it is in Japanese. And for those of you who noticed, yes, it is the theme song for the second part of .hack/Liminality.

Here's the translation:

_Walking out from this place_

_Pondering the path_

_The sky is still early dusk_

_Leaving twilight colors on clouds_

_I didn't need a beginning or an ending_

_Your eyes murmured to me_

_What memory do I need to search..._

_...in order to reach deep into my heart?_

_The too long days you speak of..._

_...are like a one night dream_

_Not able to believe it will end_

_The time to awake is still far away_

_Don't erase a thousand nights_

_Still can't depart from here_

Trippy, eh?


	9. Episode 8

A/N: And without further ado, I am FINALLY continuing The Silver Saga. And now, I am promising everyone to have this done by the end of September. And then I will start both The Blue Beginning and The Crystal Chronicle. In other news, I've almost completely planned out the final fic, but I can't write it until I finish the main series. FEH.

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon. I only own my characters and my story.

Darkness of the Unown Part 4: The Silver Saga:

Episode 8

A black-coated figure slowly made his way through the crowds of Goldenrod's rush hour. He kept his eyes constantly focused on a single point, the point occupied by a girl wearing blue pants and a white shirt, her red hair let down. He maintained a varying distance from her, moving with the crowds so as not to be detected. Finally, she reached a small apartment building and entered. He waited outside until he saw a light come on in a window on the second floor. He committed its position to memory, and leaned against the wall below it.

He waited fifteen minutes before he entered the building and climbed the steps to the second floor. He looked around and identified the room: Number 2-15. He pushed the buzzer on the side of the door. A moment later, the door opened partly, showing the girl's face.

"Yes?" she said quietly.

"You are Naoko Himogira, correct?" he asked quickly.

She nodded.

"Yes, why?"

"There's something very urgent I need to tell you. It's about Silver. You know him as Allen Takenouchi."

* * *

Silver sat atop one of the myriad skyscrapers of Goldenrod. He looked out over the city and identified Naoko's building. He sighed.

_Maybe…I could simply watch her from afar without her knowing. Then I'd be able to fulfill my mission without having to talk to her at all..._

"No…that can't work. There's too much potential for failure. The Unown wouldn't allow it."

He stood up and looked towards Naoko's building.

"I'll figure something out. They wouldn't have given this mission to me if it was impossible."

He dropped off the edge and headed towards the building.

* * *

Naoko sat numbly in one of the two chairs in her "living room". He sat down in the other, across from her. He made a slight bow towards her.

"I thank you for allowing me in. My name is Cerse Liminara."

He moved quickly to his point.

"You met…Allen…yesterday, correct?"

Naoko nodded silently. Cerse took that as a cue to continue.

"I believe he may come for you again. We don't know whether or not he'll attempt to harm you again, though. Everything he does now is at the whim of the Unown, even more so then before. So there's really no telling at all what he'll do, if anything. So anyway, if he ever shows up again, contact me at this number."

He offered a small slip of paper with a phone number on it. She took it silently. He stood up to leave.

"Wait…" said Naoko softly, "What are all those things you were talking about? Who's 'we'? What are the Unown? You can't just leave without telling me!"

Cerse sighed.

"I can't tell you who 'we' are, but I will tell you what the Unown are as best I can. They're a…I guess you would say 'collective' of beings. They live in an alternate world. They captured Allen's consciousness when he died, and made him into what he is now. As for why, I don't know. Really, nobody knows why they do anything."

He shrugged and headed out the door. Naoko did nothing.

* * *

Silver landed on the roof of the building mere minutes after Cerse had left. He considered floating in through the window, but decided against it. His next option was to knock on the door, but he decided against that too. It was better, he decided, to meet her somewhere else. Anywhere else.

He waited on the roof through the night, until the next morning. He watched as Naoko left the building to go to her job. He didn't know what it was, so he made a mental note to find out.

Finally, in the late afternoon, he spotted her several blocks away, moving towards the building. He sighed once, and darted through the air towards her.

The crowd was exceptionally thick that day, observed Naoko. She didn't know why-she never made much of a point keeping up with events in the town. She was usually too busy to deal with anything like that anyway. Even more so since Allen had reentered the world.

"Naoko."

The voice was soft, but it cut through the surrounding noise sharply. Naoko turned at once to its source, a narrow alley between two buildings. Occupying the entrance to it was the dark form of Silver.

"Oh…" was all she said.

A few minute's silence passed between them, Naoko's eyes turned down to the pavement at Silver's feet. Finally, Silver broke the silence.

"Please, Naoko...at least…at least, can you say something? I know you can't forgive me for what I've done…twice now…but can you at least say something?"

She finally looked up directly at him.

"It's alright…" she started slowly, "I'll forgive you. Cerse told me about the Unown and what they've been doing. It's not your fault."

Silver sighed.

"But how can you say that? They didn't tell me to do anything…I was going against their orders then...that's why they stopped me."

"Well…I'm willing to believe you've changed since then. You've been different every time I've met you so far, so why shouldn't you have changed again, for the better this time?"

Silver exhaled and smiled slightly, a rare event for him recently. Naoko returned the smile with a bit more enthusiasm than him.

"Sooo…" she started again, "…Is there a reason you came back?"

"…I think it would be better to talk about it somewhere else."

* * *

"So…do you know who it is?" Naoko asked quietly. She sat in a chair in her apartment. Silver leaned against a wall nearby. He shook his head slightly.

"No…they didn't tell me. I'm just supposed to stop him whenever he shows up. That's all I know."

"So…what are you going to _do_?"

He sighed.

"I don't know. I suppose I'll just stay nearby and keep a lookout."

She looked down at the floor.

"So you won't actually be with me…"

"No…they told me to remain as inconspicuous as possible."

That was a lie. The Unown had told him nothing of the sort. He hoped Naoko would believe it.

_Of course she does. She trusts me too much. That's why I have to keep as distant as I can. With any luck he'll show up quickly so this can all end…_

Naoko seemed to pick up the feeling from him.

"Do you…want to stay away from me?"

"No…it's just…I don't trust myself. And you shouldn't trust me either."

"That doesn't make any sense. Why shouldn't I trust you?"

"Because I'm just a pawn for them. If they want me to do something, I'm forced to do it."

Naoko stood up.

"But why don't you just ignore them? You're a strong person. If you set yourself to it, they can't make you do anything."

Silver shook his head.

"You don't understand. I'm not human anymore. If anything, I'm just a machine. And they've got my controls. They could easily take me over completely."

Naoko sat back down, saddened.

"Okay….If you say so…I won't trust you."

"…Thanks…"

He made to go out the door.

"No, wait!"

He stopped.

"…You're still going to be nearby, right?"

"…Yeah."

He continued out the door and shut it behind him.

A/N: And that's the end of this one. Hope y'all like it. And…damn. I said I was going to step on it, but it took me a week to get that done. That deadline's looking more and more unrealistic…Also, don't forget to visit The Unown Realm! Check my profile for the adress, because is screwy and won't allow URLs in fics!


	10. Episode 9

A/N: Okay, next chapter. Must…work…faster…!

Disclaimer: Idon'townPokemonsodon'tcomeaftermewithyourcrazyevillawyersoranything! (whew)

Darkness of the Unown: Part 3: The Silver Saga- Episode 9 

Once again, Cerse Liminara stood atop the Tin Tower with Ho-oh. The bird cocked its head a bit and spoke.

"So he's met with her again?"

"Yes," said Cerse, nodding, "He came only a few minutes after I left. That's how I was able to spot him."

The great bird sighed.

"But she hasn't contacted you."

"No. I think she must trust him too much. …Oh, I must have forgotten to tell you. I think I know who he originally was."

This surprised Ho-oh a bit, as shown by a slight widening of his eyes.

"Truly? Who, then?"

"Allen Takenouchi, of Goldenrod, who held the interesting position of this Naoko's former lover. I'm mostly sure I'm right, also, at least in her eyes. I found this out before I met her, so when I was there, I referred to Silver as Allen, and that's when she let me in. So whether or not he actually is this Allen, she certainly thinks he is."

"…Which is why she trusts him so much. Even though he tried to kill her."

Cerse shrugged.

"Yes…that's the odd part. And he didn't try it this time."

"Hmm…I'd be inclined to say it was the Unown's orders, but they were the ones who stopped him the first time. So the only option left is something in his mind."

"Wait…you don't think he's having a degenerative reaction to dissemination, do you?"

"Maybe. I'd like to think the Unown improved their design a bit, but there's no telling."

"Well then, I suppose I ought to go speak to him."

"You can't be serious."

"Of course I'm serious. Talking to him is the only way to figure out the problem. And since he appears to be in a good humor recently, now's a good time to go, don't you think."

"But what if his good humor ends?"

"Well, that's what I've got these for."

A number of cards slid out into Cerse's hand, held out towards Ho-oh. He put them away, shrugged, and turned to leave in the same daring fashion as before. Ho-oh retired back into the tower's aerie. No passing remark was needed this time.

* * *

"…Naoko."

She turned to face Silver, who had materialized in a corner of her apartment.

"...Yes?" she said softly.

"…There's somewhere I need to go. But since I have to keep watch over you, you'll need to come as well. Time is important. I'll wait as long as necessary until you feel that you're ready," came his reply.

"Okay. Where is it?"

He sighed.

"I…need to see my grave."

* * *

Silver dropped to one knee in front of the small white headstone, one of many in the cemetery, located about a mile out from Goldenrod. Engraved in the stone was the simple inscription:

**Allen Takenouchi**

**Born 2001, Departed 2018**

He reached out a hand and touched the cool stone, a neutral expression on his face. He dropped the hand down to the grass below it. A few blue sparks jumped from his hand.

"…There's nothing there…" he said after a moment.

Naoko nodded slightly, remaining standing behind him, "They never found anything at the mountain.

Silver sighed and stood up.

"…Yeah, that makes sense. If there was anything left, the Unown would have taken it."

A short silence descended upon the graveyard. A few moments later, Silver turned to Naoko.

"…Thank you. For coming."

She managed a small smile.

"…Of course. I understand why it was important for you to come here."

A small smile appeared on Silver's face as well.

"Thanks for that."

He paused for a moment, and spoke again.

"Well, I think we've been here long enough. Let's go back."

Naoko nodded her consent, but before either could move, a voice rang out from a short distance away.

"Wait."

Naoko turned towards the voice, but Silver remained motionless, his eyes turned instead as the slim figure of Cerse Liminara approached from the right. He stopped a few yards from them, his rod hanging conspicuously from his hand.

A moment later, Silver was the first to speak.

"…What are you doing here? Don't you have a…job…to do?"

A short "Hmph" escaped from Cerse's mouth. He shrugged.

"Nothing's going on right now."

"Okay then. But still, what are you doing _here_?"

He finally turned to face Cerse.

"To talk to you," was Cerse's blunt reply, "You know, your behavior recently has been very…odd. To say the least."

At Silver's questing glare, Cerse continued.

"Ho-oh told me all about what happened at the Tin Tower, and also at the Whirl Islands. Look, we're not trying to blame you for anything. We know you can't deny the Unown. All we want to know is what they're doing."

Silver sighed.

"Then there's nothing to talk about. They just tell me what I'm supposed to do. They never say why. I know only as much as you do."

Cerse blinked.

"Alright then…in that case, could you at least tell me what your current orders are?"

"To protect her," replied Silver, nodding towards Naoko.

This seemed to pique Cerse's attention.

"Protect her? From who? Or what?"

Silver shrugged.

"They didn't say. All I know is to protect her from whatever threatens her."

"That's odd…" mused Cerse, "They don't usually give orders like that, do they?"

"No. But I'm in no position to question it, as you well know."

Cerse nodded.

"…Then I suppose that's all that needs to be said. I'll be leaving now. Maybe we'll meet again, Silver."

"…Maybe."

Cerse flicked a finger off his forehead in a sort of farewell salute towards Silver and Naoko, shouldered his rod, and turned to walk away towards the nearest entrance away from Goldenrod. Silver watched his back intently for a few moments, and then turned back towards Naoko. She nodded silently, and they headed in the opposite direction, back towards Goldenrod.

A/N: …GYAAH! That took so freaking long…FEH! Well, it looks like I'm not going to able to meet my October deadline, so I'm extending it. Now, I will have the Silver Saga complete by the end of my fall break from school, about two weeks into October. It's gonna be tough….Also, I've made some revisions to my plans for DotU. Check out the Unown Realm for more details. Next chapter coming soon!


	11. Note to Readers

Okay, people…first off, I'm sorry to anyone hoping for a conclusion to The silver Saga by the date I set. As you can see, it didn't happen.

And, as of now, the story is officially on hiatus. If you've been reading my site, you'd know why, but if not…

I'm making some major changes to the entire Darkness of the Unown series, most of them focused towards making it a totally original story, rather than a Pokemon fanfic. For obvious reasons. So, when that finally happens, I'll naturally have to move it elsewhere. In the meantime, I'll have to edit/rewrite the chapters I've already put out. So the version that's been in the works so far is halted, probably permanently.

I'll make sure to make another post when I start putting out the new version. I hope you all will come back to read it.

That's all for now, so goodbye until later.


	12. Another, more awesome note

This is important. And big. Don't forget the bigness. TERMINUS IS HERE! Yes, that is right. I have finally begun writing the ultimate original version of DotU. It is on:

w w w . fictionpress . c o m

Without the spaces, of course. Search for Cerse Liminara and check it out. Also, The Unown Realm is not up right now, I've taken it down to redo it for Terminus, so hopefully it'll reappear soon enough.

Hope y'all like what I've done!

-This message will self-destruct before it gets my account deleted-


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